Tag: Gretchen Whitmer (page 2)

In the continuing search for solutions without apparent problems, the lovely and talented Gretchen Whitmer has done it again. Our erstwhile attorney-general-wannabe has taken laptop in hand, not to play solitaire, but to craft legislation that will permit 12-year-olds to get personal protection orders without telling anyone!

Here's the background -- when children have legal rights to pursue in court (if injured in an accident, for example), they sue through a device known as a "next friend." A next friend is a person who acts on behalf of someone who lacks the legal capacity to act on his or her own behalf. When a child brings a lawsuit, typically a parent or close relative will act as next friend. In many courts, the term "guardian ad litem" (meaning guardian for the litigation) is used.

Personal protection orders are authorized by Michigan law when a court determines there is reasonable cause to believe that the person to be restrained (the "respondent") may commit or threaten to commit an act of violence against the person seeking the order (the "petitioner").

PPOs are available to restrain a spouse, a former spouse, an individual with whom the petitioner has a child in common, a person with whom the petitioner has had a dating relationship, or an individual residing in the same household as the petitioner.

If a child needs a PPO, then the child -- who lacks the legal capacity to sue -- needs an adult to serve as his or her "next friend." Makes sense, right?

Cue Gretchen Whitmer.

Conspiracy theorists imagine wide, well-coordinated, concerted efforts to pursue particularized agendas. To some extent, these efforts exist, though I would not necessarily call them conspiracies, since that implies something sinister. For example, when the White House changes its message or adopts new terminology (think about the change from "health care reform" to "health insurance reform" to make insurance companies the target), memoranda go out, talking points are distributed, and the organization -- the MSM included -- delivers a coordinated message.

Beyond that sort of rudimentary message distribution, widespread conspiracies are hard to implement, and one should take such accusations very skeptically. It is far more likely that persons pursue similar agendas, not because they are engaged in a conspiracy, but because they share a particular ideology or worldview.

This is the alarming condition -- the number and variety of initiatives spawned, not by conspiracy, but by a common disregard for constitutional liberties and an infatuation with government power.

Cue Gretchen Whitmer.

Not only did seven lefties abstain yesterday in the Senate from joining the Majority in approving Roger Kahn's SCR 11, a resolution giving the OK to a ten percent pay cut for state elected officials, Liz Brater (D-Ann Arbor) actually voted NO.

Apparently asking politicians like Liz to share in the pain while the state languishes in the Granholm - Cherry economy is a step too far.  A sad commentary, then, that she wasn't even the most frustrating member of her caucus.  

I know what you're thinking... that's GOT to be that prima donna Gretchen Whitmer.  And yeah, sure, she opened her mouth again and yeah, sure, nothing but nonsense and self-serving hyperbole came puking out (she wants to be Attorney General and she wants YOU to know it) but it wasn't her, either.

No sir.  Senator Ray Basham (D-Taylor) gets this morning's "Somebody Should Shake Him Hard" Award for this gem (we could call it the SSSHH!), courtesy MIRS:

"I personally don't think, coming out of the auto industry as an autoworker, that ($79,600 a year) is too much money," he said. "We do not make any more money than a school teacher, police officer, on firefighter. As a matter of fact, some $70,000 is what one of my mayors said her dogcatcher makes. So I will look anyone in the eye and say I earn my pay, and I hope that other legislators would do their work and earn their pay, too."

Why then, Ray, didn't you join good old Liz and vote NO?  Hypocrite much?  

And ignore that for a moment... there's a town in your district paying its dog catcher $70,000 a year?!  WHAT?!  Show me the community and I'll show you a local government in need of an audit.

But that's beside the point.  You make $80,000 a year, Senator, with lifetime benefits and THE primo benefits package.  $80,000!  Most folks in my family and extended family haven't SNIFFED $80,000 a year.  Ever.  In the history of ever. We've got teachers, nurses, coaches, ministers... we do NOT have $80,000 paychecks.

And my people are not the only ones.  According to the 2007 census numbers, the most recent available, the median household (not individual) income for Michigan residents is shy of $48,000 a year.  Think that's gone up or down under your party's leadership over the last fifteen months, Ray?

Look, I'm the last to begrudge anyone from making whatever they can make.  Even in sports, when its popular to complain and moan and cry about athletes who make bajillions of dollars, I've always said that if they can get someone to pay them they'd be stupid NOT to take the money.

Well the taxpayers, Senators Basham, Whitmer and Brater, are tired of paying each of you $80,000 a year when you can't do anything but put a loser on the field.  We're not talking 2008 Tigers style last-place losers, either.  We're talking 2001 Tigers.  We're talking 2008 Lions.  We're talking abject, unequivocal failure.  

None of us need an $80,000 politician anymore.  Besides, you'll all land on you feet.  I hear there are some plumb dog catcher jobs out there.

The mainstream media, particularly in Michigan, is naturally inclined to avoid anything positive Republicans are doing anyways, and extreme-minority status gives editors one extra excuse to flash a thumbs down when it comes to covering GOP legislative efforts.

Even the Republican controlled Senate has a hard time breaking through the gatekeepers in the MSM because, after all, whatever they're doing is going to get scuttled by Andy Dillon in the House or Jennifer Granholm and John Cherry in the Governor's office anyways.

To the casual observer it might appear that our friendly neighborhood GOPers are unimaginative, asleep at the wheel or just plain lazy.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  There are a good number of genuinely rock-ribbed conservatives in Lansing fighting every single day on the side of working moms and dads, job makers and Michigan families against the big government liberals running this town.  

But, at the risk of frivolously paraphrasing one of the most important lessons in Christendom, "how will voters hear if no one tells them?"

Beauty of the blogosphere is we can go around our friends in the mainstream press and talk about the things they and the Democrats would rather we didn't.  So, going forward here at RightMichigan, on and around session days, we'll be posting a regular column, tentatively called the Caucus Courier, highlighting the various happenings from members on the right side of the aisle.

Read on...